KINGSTON, Jamaica – Chairman & CEO of GraceKennedy Limited Douglas Orane is expressing confidence in the Group’s financial structure and its ability to weather the current financial crisis.
In his statement accompanying the unaudited results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2008, Mr. Orane noted, “While we are suffering the effects of this new environment, we are well positioned to manage the slippage in exchange rates, our financial structure remains strong, the Group’s leadership has the experience of managing through past crises, and we are confident that we will emerge from this challenge well equipped to resume solid growth.”
Chairman & CEO, Douglas Orane
For the period ended December 31, 2008 the Group achieved Revenues for the twelve month period of $53,462.3 million (2007: $48,749.4 million), an increase of $4,712.9 million or 9.7%. The Net Profit Attributable to Equity holders of the Company decreased by $1,143.9 million over the corresponding period of 2007, moving from $3,435.5 million to $2,291.6 million. This represents earnings per stock unit of $6.98 (2007: $10.55).
In November 2007, GraceKennedy Ltd. completed the sale of 25% of the shareholding in GraceKennedy Money Services Caribbean SRL to the Western Union affiliate MT Caribbean Holdings which resulted in a gain on sale of $1,384.1 million. If this one-off gain is excluded from the 2007 results, the Group’s 2008 net profit attributable to equity holders would have reflected an increase of 11.7% over 2007.
GK Foods and GK Investments had mixed results during the fourth quarter. In particular, GK Investments’ results were negatively affected by a fourth quarter loss in the subsidiary Hardware & Lumber Ltd., due mainly to a major downturn in the construction industry.
GraceKennedy Limited made a second dividend payment on December 18, 2008 of 65 cents per stock unit, or a total of $213.9 million to shareholders on record as at November 28, 2008. The total dividend payment for 2008 was therefore $378.3 million compared to $375.2 million for 2007.
